Merry Christmas to ME !

[eminence_front]

Hey ya'll.

Been lurking for many moons, but just now getting settled back into life in Texas.

We were relocated out to SoCal for a couple years, so I had downsized to a WSM knock-off due to space and size restrictions.

Now we're back in Texas, and my Wife surprised me with an offset smoker for the Holiday (under the premise she get a Brisket for New Years.)

WELL... She got me a new braunfels thin walled offset "hondo" smoker, which I promptly returned, after which I couldn't make up my mind...

I have a nice 5 burner Propane grill for my grilling needs so being dual purpose isn't a must for me. I really want something that I can throw a couple brisket and ribs into, and maintain temps easily, and something that will last a while.

There's a couple options for me in the sub $400 range.

1.) Oklahoma Joe's Offset Smoker "Wild West Traditions" Smoker (16")

http://www.academy.com/index.php?page=content&target=products/recreation/grilling/smokers&start=0&selectedSKU=0263-02219-3329]Okla Joes @ Academy[/url]

2.) Old Country 16" Vertical Smoker (square fire box)

http://www.academy.com/index.php?page=content&target=products/recreation/grilling/charcoal_grills&start=16&selectedSKU=0262-40121-0835]16" Vertical[/url]

What is the best choice for long  (8+ hr.) semi-unattended smokes ?

Can both be used with fruit-wood splits and charcoal ?

 

[mballi3011]

Now I have the vertical "Bandera" smoker and it's an alright smoker. I use my smoke vault gas unit most of all but I do still use the Bandera mostly when we are at the pool where it lives. It's a nice smoker for a charcoal unit. I would recommend the side burner unit just because I think it would be better then the vertical unit. It has a really bad hot spot at the bottom but it does cook alright I guess. So I guess I'm not the best reviewer.